Between a Stump and a Hard Place
Panama Canal Servicing the world's shipping has recently become quite profitable for Panama, and under new government, the small nation has grown in power and influence to be a player in the world market. The entire country is filling up with businesses moving an office there to receive easy access to the canal without being taxed and tolled immensely. The Panamanians are all to eager to go to work in these offices, and people from all over are coming here to live. Contents: Roadbuster Snapdragon Decepticon Sensor - Panama Canal Hidden UNS Atlantis Abandoned Air Base Obvious exits: Northwest leads to Mexico. Northeast leads to Caribbean Sea. Southeast leads to Amazon River Basin. East leads to Trinidad Oil Fields. West leads to Central Pacific - Mexican Coast. Fly According to the Decepticons, thier new Mexican territory extends as far south as the valuable, defensible ithmus of the Panama Canal. However, so much of the Decepticon's attentions have been focused on thier northern border, leaving Panama and it's canal relatively uncontested, Still, the Decepticons patrol this sector of Central America, sending some of thier fastest interceptors soaring above the jungles and hills, including the dreaded SNAPDRAGON. The white Sr-71 lazily soars above the area, filthy as ever, although this is not readily apparant from afar. Roadbuster has departed from the Aerialbots' hangar on a solo reconnaissance mission that was neither scheduled nor supported by command. He pushes through palm fronds, towering in the jungle, stopping to put his binoculars to his optics every now and again. It's as he's standing in an enormous clearing that he hears the roar of a jet engine and looks up. Vince Larsen arrives from Mexico to the northwest. Vince Larsen has arrived. ARES Exo-Armor has arrived. Vince Larsen drops ARES Exo-Armor . Vince Larsen has left. Vince Larsen enters the ARES Exo-Armor . "Ugh, why are they always sending me out on patrol, I should be back at base soaking in an oil bath." Snapdragon moans. "Suck it up, Snapdragon!" Krunk replies, as the armoured Nebulon mans the controls of Snapdragon's helm. "You might as well take a nap, I can handle the flying. Lazy good fer' nothin'..." It's not often the two are parted, but when they are, thier differences become more apparant. But at least the patrol will continue, even if Snapdragon snores his way through it, as Krunk flies his binary-bonded jet component over the tractless jungle below. Combat: Snapdragon sets his defense level to Protected. You receive a radio message from Windshear: This is Windshear, mam. I have a question regarding a report I think I should file but I beleive the subject matter is rather delicate. You send a radio message to Windshear: Yeah? Whatcha need? Roadbuster raises his binoculars. He easily identifies the SR-71 and produces his laser rifle to draw a bead on him. "Horrorcon," he murmurs, "this oughta be fun." Combat: Roadbuster misses Filthy Jet with his Assault Laser Rifle attack! You receive a radio message from Windshear: When I left Bar Moon the other cycle, I got lost and ended up on some weird planet, well I picked up Lord Galvatron's signal there... I got there.. he was offline.. he had been ganged up on by some autobots and.. hippies, whatever they are... I uhh... rescued him. Backfire helped as well but we got him to NCC and I effected some emergancy repairs on him while waiting for a medic... this is our Leader we are talking about here... all actions should be reported but Im thinking his image as well... You send a radio message to Windshear: ...ooooh, yeah, I get your drift. Here's what I'm gonna suggest. Get a medic that /likes you/ to revive Lord Galvatron. Then tell him how you and Backfire gallantly rescued him from those dirty hippies and Autobots. Then let Galvatron make the report himself. That way, he won't shoot you for saying something he didn't like. He can put the spin he wants on the situation. Roadbuster says, "Got a Decepticon sighting in Panama. One so far...looks like Snapdragon. Anyone available to provide a bit of back up?" You receive a radio message from Windshear: Excellent idea, mam. I will do as you say. I appreciate that you understand the delicacy of this particular situation. He still has my respect. I undertand no one is perfect, no matter how hard they try to give that image. I was just thinking of the rest of the soldiers and Lord Galvatron. I will do as you say. Thank you for your time. Vince Larsen says, "I'm on the Atlantis at the moment, not too far out. Lemme grab my exo, and I'll be right out." Snapdragon snorts, startled, like he was just rudely awakened. "Huh, what? I'm under fire! Got um.. a Wrecker, down here in Panama!" Roadbuster can be heard venting a complex sigh. "Thanks, Larsen." Windshear says, "Dont ya just hate that?" You send a radio message to Windshear: Heeeey, what are Wing Commanders for, eh? You just remember this, down the road. Everyone has off days, even.... uh... Lord Galvatron, I guess! He's still alive. That counts for something, and it says more that you and Windshear cared enough to bring him back to safety. Catechism says, "Frakkin' Wreckers. They'll ruin your day, they will. I'll mobilise from NCC." You receive a radio message from Windshear: Yes we did. Cant have our leader being caught with his cogs down like that you know. >_> You send a radio message to Windshear: Some more free advice, for what it's worth. Don't go blabbin' this around, and particularly don't tell Shockwave. Ahh, a cushy detail for once. Vince had been assigned to help out with some maintenance work on the engines of the UNS Atlantis. Was supposed to have been a couple days of 'nothing going on' for a change, but apparently, it wasn't meant to be. Getting the call, the Captain of the massive carrier radioed Vince on the ship's intercom and told him to grab his exo and hotfoot it out to Panama, to provide some backup to an Autobot. And, being who he was, Vince complied after briefly acknowledging the order, and hot-footed it to the exo-bay. Luckily, he'd been ordered to take his Ares along, in case something like this happened. He'd have preferred the Headhunter, but it was still being patched up from it's triple-bombing in India. Was almost ready, though, which made Vince smile as he took his Ares and glided it from the carrier to solid ground and started moving as fast as he could towards Roadbuster. It was gonna take him a couple minutes to get there, though, given that he had to walk the entire way. Krunk starts punching the sides of the cockpit. "Snapdragon, wake up! We're being shot at!" The Nebulan shouts, grabbing the controls and spinning the filthy jet into a roll, to avoid the incoming laser-fire, and to try and wake up the lazy horrorcon. The jet is filthy but still highly maneuverable, and Krunk wheels it around to bear down upon the source of the lasers coming from the jungle, firing the Decepticon's gyro-guns down at the canopy. You receive a radio message from Windshear: I have not mentioned it to anyone. This is the first time Ive talked about it to anyone so yo are the only other one that knows. I can not say if Backfire has said anything though but I will find him and remind him not to discuss this with anyone. And Shockwave... no.. he.. disturbs me, mam. I wouldnt dream of telling him. I feel he would use this tidbit for his own ends somehow and probably the messenger too... Combat: Snapdragon sets his defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Filthy Jet misses Roadbuster with his Gyro-Guns attack! -4 XF-35B Astral Lightning isn't allowed to do orbital drops for the next few cycles, so say Doctor Fulcrum. Her leg might fall off. This makes Catechism a sad Catechism. She knows what will cheer her up, though! A good fight! Nothing says 'happiness' like ruining someone else's day. So the XF-35B is just cruising along at Mach 1.67. It's painfully slow, given that she's gotten a bit addicted to the thrill of orbital drops, but it serves to get her from NCC to the Panama Canal. Along the way, she chatters idly over the radio. As she approaches, Catechism starts to look for where the fight might be. Catechism shan't have to look far! Laser blasts screaming up out of the jungle scream Roadbuster's position. He dives to avoid Snapdragon's fire, laughing as it pits the ground harmlessly. "Ha! Nice shot! If it weren't for gravity you couldn't even hit the ground." He scans the jet's frame, taking his time before firing again. Combat: Roadbuster takes extra time to steady himself. Pass You send a radio message to Windshear: I gotta say, keepin an optic on Backfire would be in your interests, then, until Lord Galvatron is up and operational. Backfire's enthusiastic, sure, but he's... well... the name says it all, doesn't it? But the best thing you can do is get Galvatron repaired ASAP. The longer he's down for the count, the more people are going to ask questions. Shockwave's plenty effective, and he does great work, but that one optic of his is fixed on the prize, y'know? The radar system on the Ares was, to be perfectly frank, a bit primitive, given the available technology, but it was good enough to pick up a jet, not too far off. And then a second? Radioing ahead to Roadbuster to warn him, Vince arms his weapon systems and brings the Vulcan Cannon from the back of the suit up into firing position. Only a few hundred more yards, and he should be in firing range, so he picks up the pace as best he can, and closes the distance pretty quick, spinning up the Vulcan and watching the 20mm tracers streak out towards the new inbound target, Catechism. Of course, Vince hasn't learned /all/ the Decepticons yet, so he has no clue who he's actually engaging, he just recognizes a Decepticon jet. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor sets its defense level to Aggressive. You receive a radio message from Windshear: I know exactly what you mean and Im looking for a medic I can trust as we speak. I was able to repair Lord Galatron enough to get him back online but his injuries are more than my meager skills can handle. And yes, I must track down Backfire, yes, his name says it all, I agree. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes XF-35B Astral Lightning with its Vulcan Auto-Cannon attack! -1 Combat: You took 6 damage. Vince Larsen says, "Another jet. They roll these guys off an assembly line, Roadbuster?" XF-35B Astral Lightning hears some of the most fascinating things over the radio! But she'll need to focus on combat now, because she's just found the fight. Ah, that's the Wrecker known as Roadbuster, and it looks like some random human in a tin suit. Oh, is it shooting at her? How adorable! Humans are so funny sometimes. Maybe not so funny when the shot actually connects, scorching the leading edge of her wing. Catechism overshoots the Ares and then banks around, turning, lining up her reply. In a brief burst, the retort comes. Does this human speak 'bullet'? Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Neutral. Combat: XF-35B Astral Lightning strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her 25-mm GAU-12 cannon (Pistol) attack! The big filthy jet is great for fighting in the open skies, or chasing down stragglers, but not for a toe to toe rumble in the jungle. The jet makes a reckless nosedive towards the jungle, unfolding into a giant steel-plated dinosaur in the process. Snapdragon's eyes flare as he links up with Krunk, the binary bonding taking effect as they join minds. "Who interuppted my NAP?!" The dinosaur roars, his gaze falling on Roadbuster. Snarling, the burly beast lunges upon the Wrecker, smashing his way through trees and underbrush to try and take a bite out of Roadbuster. Snapdragon transforms into his filthy dinosaur mode! Roadbuster says, "That's probably pretty close to the truth." Combat: Snapdragon sets his defense level to Fearless. You send a radio message to Windshear: I find Fulcrum does a pretty good job, if you can find him. The Constructicons don't have too much of an agenda, if you can grab one of the smarter ones, like Hook. I wouldn't ask Bonecrusher! And you're pretty buddy-buddy with that Harrow, aren't you? Combat: Snapdragon uses up a charge on his Radar Helmet booster pack! Combat: Filthy Tyrannosaur strikes Roadbuster with his Savagery attack! You receive a radio message from Windshear: yes Harrow was the one I was thinking of. Shes repaired me so many times... she is good. I was also thinking of Hook as well and I didnt realize Fulcrum could assist. I do not know that mech other then hearing his name mentioned. Roadbuster sees the Snapdragon's descent, tracks him all the way to through the canopy to the leaf-strewn floor, but clearly completely loses him in the brush. He's caught completely unawares and knocked back a few steps as Snapdragon rends him savagely. Energon spatters the palm fronds. Sparks pour from a pair of bite wounds. But Buster stays up. "Gah! You filth! Eat fist!" Watching those tracers pepper the jet, Vince watches as it overshoots and comes back around. Unfortunately, the Ares isn't really designed with speed and agility in mind, so he doesn't get turned in time to avoid the incoming return fire. The 25mm fire rocks the exo, but it's pilot maintains control and smiles. Yes, he speaks 'bullet' quite well. He's also fluent in 'laser', which he demonstrates by raising the heavily armored arms of the Ares up, charging the laser emitters in each forearm and firing the pair at the jet. "Geez, watch where you point that, you'll put someone's eye out!" Combat: Roadbuster strikes Filthy Tyrannosaur with his Dirty Fighting attack! Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes XF-35B Astral Lightning with its PewPew! attack! -2 Combat: You took 8 damage. XF-35B Astral Lightning replies coldly, "That is the point, human. Put out an eye. Or perhaps your frail fleshy heart. I'm not partial." This human seems to have decent aim, tagging her on the other wing now, and she slips into more evasive maneuvers, weaving. A little suit like that can turn in just a step, so if she can't out-turn him, she's better make herself a hard target in other ways. The XF-35B sends back an energy shot of her own. Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Guarded. Combat: XF-35B Astral Lightning strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Zap! (Disruptor) attack! You send a radio message to Windshear: Ah, Fulcrum's a blacksmith! He makes weapons, too. Great guy to go drinking with. Kinda dour, but eh, I figure being smart gets him down. Too much thinkin' and all. Turns into a MiG-29. Despite that I used to work for the guy, I wouldn't recommend for Soundwave for this specific incident. Too many ways he could take advantage of dear downed boss. Filthy Tyrannosaur is not used to things that don't fall down and scream when he bites them. Still groggy from his brief nap, he's an easy target for Roadbuster's right hook, and Snapdragon's brittle armor flakes away like flint. "Why should I eat your FIST, Wrecker, when i can have the whole ARM?" He replies with much gnashing of teeth, and the huge jaws lash out again as he tries to chew off Roadbuster's arm. Combat: Filthy Tyrannosaur strikes Roadbuster with his Rend attack! You receive a radio message from Windshear: I agree there with Soundwave. He always did seem like he had his own agenda. If I do now hear back from Harrow I will try and contact Fulcrum. And Mig-29s are old earth jets are they not? Ok, he absolutely /hated/ taking on aerial targets with a ground-based exo. Vince muttered a quick prayer, and was spinning up the barrels of the Vulcan again when the energy blast caught him in the shoulder and rocked the suit to the side. Getting tossed around a bit, he could feel the new bruises all too well. Bringing the Vulcan Cannon back around, still spun up, the whine of the weapon a mere whisper to it's pilot, until it opened up again, spitting out hot 20mm tracers at the weaving jet, trying to pepper the Decepticons engines and force this one to the ground. "You'll have to do a /lot/ better than that, Decepticon!" Combat: ARES Exo-Armor misses XF-35B Astral Lightning with its Engine peppering 20mm bullets (Laser) attack! "Gaahk!" Roadbuster is continually surprised by this Horrorcon's tenacity! He staggers with the force of Snapdragon's voracious attack, but still doesn't go down. He jerks his arm free of that offensive maw and takes a few quick steps back. His hand goes to the rocket rack over his shoulder. "Try these instead!" Ever the comedian, Roadbuster. Combat: Roadbuster strikes Filthy Tyrannosaur with his Rocket Rack attack! The human doesn't like aerial targets? Catechism wouldn't know that, but she can oblige him, all the same. She transforms, tumbling over his shot with an acrobatic flourish, and lands lightly on the moist, tropical soil, favouring her good leg heavily. Catechism summons her electric whip, the scent of ozone mingling with the perfumes of the rainforest blossoms, and she cracks it out at the Ares, sneering, "Do better? How about I fry you 'well done'?' XF-35B Astral Lightning transforms into robot form. Catechism's feet unfold, her arms unfold out of her body, her nosecone rotates through her body and ends up on her shoulders to expose her face, and her wings rotate into position. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Whiplash Whirlwind attack! -4 You send a radio message to Windshear: Ain't that old. Slag, the F-15's older than the Mig-29! But yeah, look him up if you can't get Harrow or Hook. Hmm, what is with medics and H-names, anyway? You receive a radio message from Windshear: chuckles. "That like cons in general with names that begin with S you know. The rocket explodes against Snapdragon's hide, but as the smoke clears the huge dragon is virtually unharmed. He opens his jaws again to bite at Roadbuster. The dinosaur, after it's brutal assault, is visibly slowing, however, and he manages only a slow flailing instead of a bowel-loosening flurry of rage. Combat: Filthy Tyrannosaur strikes Roadbuster with his lazy nibble (Punch) attack! Damn! Vince couldn't help but mutter to himself under his breath when that shot missed. But there wasn't time to dwell. This jet was a little quicker than the last one he'd tangled with, and he /really/ wished he'd been able to get the Headhunter fully repaired. But, that was a fleeting thought as the Decepticon was on the ground, and pulling out a /whip/? Well, that was a new one, but Vince didn't have time to ponder what that meant, as that whip lashed out and electrified his Ares, and by default, him just a bit. Good thing the flight suits were insulated against electricity, though lightly, so the pilot only took a mild jolt himself. His Ares, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky and a couple of instrument panels started to smoke. No damage to the systems themselves yet, but it wouldn't be long, and he'd probably lose his targeting system, or something. But it was time to do things /his/ way now. That Decepticon looked to be favoring one leg. Maybe Vince could use that? So he took off at as fast a run as he could manage, towards Catechism, and went for a flying tackle, aimed at her possibly bad leg, and hoped it wasn't a trick to lure him in for some kind of major attack. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes Catechism with its Knee-busting Flying Tackle (Smash) attack! Combat: You took 3 damage. Roadbuster is caught in a nibble that is not nearly as lazy as Snapdragon may have feared it would be. A good portion of his right arm is chomped away, leaving it shaking as he tries to aim his laser rifle for a counterattack. "You just don't know when to quit, do you?" He vents heavily, losing more fuel than he cares to admit to himself. Combat: Roadbuster strikes Filthy Tyrannosaur with his Assault Laser Rifle attack! -1 Most Seekers are known for favouring ranged combat, and while Catechism isn't technically a Seeker anymore, she's made a point of learning enough about melee to be decent at it, hence taking up the whip, something of an unusual weapon, but useful for snaring target or hitting multiple targets quickly. She's tackled in that bad leg, and she goes down, the soft soil dirtying her frame. She tucks and rolls, trying to dislodge her attacker and take cover behind some trees. Catechism puts her whip away and brings up a hand to wipe her face, before pointing that hand - and the gun attached to her arm - at her assailant, squirting out a blob of acid at the exo. Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Catechism misses ARES Exo-Armor with her Acid Strike attack! You send a radio message to Windshear: Ugh, I gotta get in the game! I think you're good for now, right? Krunk once knew an 'entertainer' who was fond of whips. But that isn't relevant right now. Snapdragon doesn't try to dodge the incoming laser-fire, it's far easier to just whether the attack, and keep his energy for bitin'. Quitting sounds awfully tempting, but he'd be shot for abandoning his post and leaving Catechism outnumbered. The dragonsaur lumbers back, and swings with his broad tail, hoping to knock Roadbuster off his feet. You receive a radio message from Windshear: oh yea Im fine! Thanks, get back to your scene! Combat: Snapdragon uses up a charge on his Radar Helmet booster pack! Combat: Filthy Tyrannosaur strikes Roadbuster with his tail slap (Kick) attack! Vince Larsen says, "How you holding up over there, Roadbuster? Looks like Snapdragon took a decent chunk out of you." Sandstorm says, "Pffft! Roadie can take a kickin' and keep on wreckin'. He ain't a Wrecker for nothing!" Roadbuster says, "He's...surprisingly quick. I'm taking a pounding over here. Ya'd be serprised, Sandy. Might have un'erestimated Snapdragon. You need'n help, Larsen?" Sandstorm says, "It happens. Just hang in there and do what you gotta, bro." Vince Larsen says, "No, I think I got this one under control. Not as accurate as I'd expect from one of the Seekers. Least I think it's one of the Seekers. If I can drop this one pretty quick, I'll come give you a hand with that dinosaur wannabe." Roadbuster says, "S'all about teamwork, Larsen. Let's get this party goin good...drag that Seeker back here and let 'im face the two of us." Sandstorm laughs. "It can be hard to tell those flyboys apart, don't feel bad Vince." Roadbuster is, indeed finally taken off his feet by Snapdragon's swinging tail! He doesn't stay down long, though; he rolls with the hit springing into a crouch and pulling his gauss gun. "Yer quicker than ya look," he hisses, "course ya'd pretty much have to be!" Combat: Roadbuster strikes Filthy Tyrannosaur with his Gauss Pistol attack! Well, the jet went down, at least. Though apparently Vince had overestimated the weakness of that leg? Rolling through the tackle, bringing the Ares back to it's feet, he turns just in time to avoid that spray of acid, and watches it impact and melt through a decent sized tree pretty quick. Ok, now /that/ would have left a mark, and turning, Vince once more brought that 20mm Vulcan Cannon up into firing position. Those 20mm shells would punch right through at least most of the trees here, and he let loose with a full volley, to take away Catechism's hiding place. "Tch. Trying to hide behind a tree isn't going to help you any. Now that acid, on the other hand, is a dirty trick!" Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes Catechism with its I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK! attack! Combat: You took 9 damage. Catechism groans as she misses the human. That went splendidly, didn't it? As bullets tear into her through the trees, she rises into a crouch and springs out from behind the trees, swinging a punch down at the suit. Catechism snarls, "All's fair in war, fleshling. Anything else is just a delusion." Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Guarded. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Smiting the Heathens (Punch) attack! Filthy Tyrannosaur is fairly slow in his dinosaur mode, but he can lash out with frightening speed to attack with his jaws and claws. He is a one-robot army when he's riled, although his attention is flagging now, his temper simmering down to a slow boil as he runs low on energon and motivation. There IS, however, a Wrecker who keeps shooting him, and Snapdragon isn't going to let him get away with it. He looms over Roadbuster, and with his little blue t-rex arms he tries to rip into the Wrecker's chest. Combat: Filthy Tyrannosaur misses Roadbuster with his claw slash (Punch) attack! Stumbling back, the exo-suit sporting yet /another/ new fist-sized dent from the jet, Vince grunts with the impact as he's tossed around inside the Ares, adding new bruises and what felt suspiciously like a pulled muscle in his left arm, and puts the clawed hands of the Ares to good use in this close-quarters fight, swiping at the Decepticon's chest and hoping to rip upwards to tear off the faceplate of this femme Seeker. "I never said it wasn't /fair/, just that it was a dirty trick. There's a difference!" He had kind of hoped that his last barrage of fire would have taken Catechism to the point of at least running away, so he could lend Roadbuster a hand, but it just wasn't meant to be, it seemed. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor misses Catechism with its Armor rending claw (Punch) attack! Roadbuster musters all his strength and speed and manages to avoid Snapdragon's slashing claw, which surely would have opened him up good had it hit. He doesn't sneer, because he has no mouth. He doesn't glare at the Horrorcon, because he has an immobile optic bar. The look he gives the dragon should be a withering one, but it only succeeds in being stoic and disaffected. "That's IT," he roars. His right arm badly damaged, he activates his shrapnel launcher with a simple thought command, aiming to take Snapdragon down for good as well as whatever Seeker it is that has been pestering Larsen. Combat: Roadbuster strikes Filthy Tyrannosaur with his Shrapnel-Missile Launcher Area attack! Combat: Roadbuster misses Catechism with his Shrapnel-Missile Launcher Area attack! Catechism will not give the Ares her face! Her face is there to keep the stuff inside her head (not much) from falling out! She dances back, out of his reach, trampling some orchids and birds-of-paradise as she gets out of the way. Then, when she hears the roar of a missile she throws herself down and lets the missile crash headlong into some mangrove trees instead. Hooboy, dodged more than a bullet there! Getting back up, because staying down isn't something she ever learned, Catechism argues, "No, my acid is pretty clean and pure. Snapdragon's the dirty one. We keep trying to send him to a spa, but noooo." Then he would be Spadragon. Catechism winds back one of her arms and tries to drive an elbow down into the vague cranial unit area of the suit. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Downward Elbow Drive (Punch) attack! The blast knocks Snapdragon off his feet, peppering the filthy tyrannosaur and the surrounding jungle with jagged shards of shrapnel. The shrapnel looks painful, and the beast struggles to get to his feet. Flailing his trunk-like legs, he instead transforms, those legs becoming arms. More mobile, the Horrorcon leaps to his feet, glowering at the expressionless Roadbuster(Snapdragon has slightly more expression ability than Roadbuster) "Huh. That was it? I think you need to start bringing a bigger gun, Roadbuster." He says flatly, before swinging in with a wide punch with one greasy fist. Snapdragon transforms into his filthy robot mode! Combat: Snapdragon strikes Roadbuster with his slobberknocker (Punch) attack! That clawed exo-hand missing threw Vince off balance for just a moment, as he hadn't been expecting the jet to be able to react that quickly. Well, he'd always had a problem with being super confident of a lot of things. But he was busy making sure that Roadbuster's attack wasn't going wild, and didn't see the elbow coming from the seeker. The 'head' of the Ares gets a nice, new dent in it, and Vince can definitely feel the pulled muscle in his arm now, but he ignores it and presses on, watching the warning light indicating servo failure in not one, but /two/ of the exo's joints. Bringing one of the huge feet of the exo up towards Catechism's midsection, he's got no 'snappy comeback' or 'witty retort' at the moment, so he just remains quiet and focuses on the fight. He wants to come out of this one in one piece. Maybe after this, he should back off and try to do a quick patch job on this thing, and pray he doesn't get turned into a grease spot while he's doing it? Combat: ARES Exo-Armor misses Catechism with its Kick attack! Combat: ARES Exo-Armor (ARES Exo-Armor ) used "Kick": A Level 2 MELEE attack. Roadbuster swears as his shrapnel launcher utterly fails to bring down anyone. All he gets for his trouble is a disgusting fist in his mostly featureless face. This sends him reeling, but he tries to use this to his advantage and put a little distance between himself and Snapdragon. He has no witty retort - in his anger, the impulse toward imnsult comedy that seems to be so common among Cybertronians is drowned. He transforms, engine revving beastially, and aims the his extravagantly green gun at Snapdragon. Roadbuster dives forward, forcing his heavy frame into the form of a green and orange Cybertronic jeep! Combat: Hardcore Battlejeep misses Snapdragon with his Linear Blaster Gun attack! -3 Catechism has better reflexes than a lot of people expect of her. She's deceptively agile, despite her build. Planting one foot firmly, just behind her, she pushes off backwards in a reverse leap, lightly assisted by her anti-gravs, out of range of the kick. However, while that ankle is so temptingly up is the air, Catechism can't help but grab her whip and snap it out at the Ares's kicking leg. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Whiplash Whirlwind attack! -4 Sonuva! Vince is starting to truly /hate/ that whip, and can't keep his exo from toppling to the ground after that whip snags the kicking foot and drags the other leg out from under him as well. Slamming into the ground, he's quick to push the suit back to it's feet, but instead of returning fire, he's /got/ to find some decent cover and make a few repairs, or he'll be out of this fight real fast. So he whirls around and takes off at a run, as though he's retreating from the fight. But he stops after a few seconds, behind a tree. There are so many warning lights flashing in this thing after hitting the ground, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to keep it together much longer, even /with/ a patch job, but he was pretty much a mechanical genius, so he could almost work miracles with his exo's. As the Ares ducks into a thick cluster of trees, Vince glances around and jumps out of the exo, going to work on the servo's. Gotta get those working again, or he's not going to be able to do anything except sit still and get pounded on. Broadside says, "Ya'll havin' fun without me!?" Roadbuster says, "Birdo! Could use some Wrecker backup." Broadside says, "A'ight!" Vince Larsen says, "Roadbuster, I got some problems here, gotta try to fix a couple things on this exo, or I'm not gonna be walking away from this one." As he misses the Horrocon yet again, Roadbuster curses in a manner most inappropriate for a kids' show. For the sake of our innocent audience, let's just say that Roadbuster shouts, "Sammiches!" His punishment for such abrasive language is an armor-blackening blast from Snapdragon's gyro gun. He revvs his engine again and, at a call over the radio, forgoes another attack. Instead, he roars off toward Vince. "En route, Larsen." He tries to insintuate himself between Vince and Catechism by running Catechism over! Vince Larsen leaves the ARES Exo-Armor . Vince Larsen has arrived. Combat: Vince Larsen quickly patches up some of ARES Exo-Armor 's minor injuries. Broadside says, "Primus Buster watch your language!" Combat: Hardcore Battlejeep strikes Catechism with his Wimpy Ram (Punch) attack! Combat: You took 6 damage. Roadbuster says, "I'm in a bad way, bro. I'll dial it back when I aint droppin parts." Catechism finds her whip very useful for bringing people to the ground, indeed. She smirks, optics glowing brightly against her dark face, shadowed by the tall trees of the forest. Whip flicking from side to side lightly as she walks, she stalks after her target, calling, "Come out, come out! You can't hide forev-AH!" A hardcore battle Jeep slams into the side of Catechism, knocking her off her feet. From the forest floor, she tries to shoot the license plate of that reckless driver! Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Catechism strikes Hardcore Battlejeep with her Zap! (Disruptor) attack! Snapdragon finds himself rather suddenly all alone in the jungle, as Roadbuster goes to pester Catechism instead. This does not bother Snapdragon much, apparantly, because he instead sits down on a tree stump and causually drinks out of a flask of Energon. Combat: Snapdragon takes extra time to steady himself. Pass "NOBODY PANIC!" Broadside rumbles as he coasts over the scene. He focuses on what he perceives to be the meanest, baddest 'con about, which is Snapdragon. Not that Cate isn't threatening! Perhaps too threatening. Broadside veers off and angles down towards the chillaxing Horrorcon, in a reckless attempt to simply ram the mech off the tree stump with his nose cone. "YAAARGHH!" Combat: Broadside misses Snapdragon with his Ram attack! Hardcore Battlejeep is blasted in the back end! The shot punches through the armor above his right rear wheel and leaves it a snarled, twisted mess which threatens to puncture his tire if he doesn't transform. He does so, albeit with considerable difficulty, and produces his laser rifle. A single glance at it shows him that he's out of juice, which elicits another bawdy curse. "Tortellini!" He is forced to duck behind a conveniently placed bolder to catch his breath. Broadside's raucous arrival on the scene cheers him quite a bit. "Broadside," he shouts, "I never been so glad to see ya!" The mean-looking Cybertronic jeep pops apart with reckless aggression. A familiar sound accompanies its swift and ruthless transformation into Roadbuster! Combat: Roadbuster takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Hands working with practiced ease, the speed and precision only a master mechanic could muster in these conditions, Vince manages to jury-rig the servo's in question and make them work. They weren't perfect, but it was definitely better than nothing at all! Climbing back into the exo, he powers up quickly and stomps back out into the open, his weapon systems powered, and since he's got a bit of distance on his target again, he decides to power up the forearm mounted laser emitters to full power and lets loose with a burst of bright weapons fire at Catechism. He'll let the Wrecker's deal with Snapdragon, since he doubts that he can even compete with that lumbering monster on any level. "Lucy! I'm HOOOME!" *Pewpewpew* Vince Larsen has left. Vince Larsen enters the ARES Exo-Armor . Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes Catechism with its I love Lucy lasers! attack! Combat: You took 10 damage. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor 's attack has damaged your Accuracy! Catechism says, "Snapdragon, take to the air in your jet form! You'll want to be clear of the blast." Snapdragon was just relaxing, minding his own business, drinking a few shots of hard energon in th middle of the panamanian jungle, when he hears Broadside going 'YAAAARGHH' and ruining his lazy drinking. He gets off his stump in time to miss being crushed by a Broadside. "Great, now I've gotta trash YOU too? Why don't you take your half-eaten green pal back with you and we can both just go home." He groans. He already nearly-murdered Roadbuster, and isn't really up to killing someone else. If Catechism wants to deal with all the Autobots, more power to her. The Horrorcon takes to the air, transforming into his jet mode and filling the jungle below with hot, smelly exaust. Snapdragon transforms into his filthy jet mode! Combat: Filthy Jet takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Snapdragon says, "I'm clear. Give 'em hell." Catechism grits out, "I'm not your Lucy." The Ares's shot nails her in one of the optics, impairing her depth perception and accuracy. Huh, so it is training Wreckers or something? Granted, she recalls that it didn't go so well for Snapdragon versus Broadside in the Olympics. Perhaps she should lend a hand... hmm. Lend a hand-grenade? She pulls out one of her grenades, takes a few steps back, pulls the pin, and flings it, now running the other way. Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Catechism strikes Broadside with Hand-Grenade's Small Explosion #9626 Area attack! Combat: Catechism's Hand-Grenade is destroyed! Combat: Catechism strikes Roadbuster with Hand-Grenade's Small Explosion #9626 Area attack! Combat: Roadbuster falls to the ground, unconscious. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with Hand-Grenade's Small Explosion #9626 Area attack! Catechism whoops! Broadside says, "Buster!" Roadbuster says, "...bzzzt...." Snapdragon says, "That counts as mine." Catechism says, "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just worry about about Broadside now!" Decibel says, "Somebody prep medbay, sounds like it's going to be needed." Snapdragon says, "Meh. I told him to go home." Vince Larsen says, "Crap! Broadside, let's take these idiots to school and show them why it's a bad idea to stick around!" Sandstorm says, "That don't sound pleasant. The Decepticons have been pickin' up the intensity lately. I think it's time we started pushin' back again." Broadside says, "Nrghh, I'll take 'em all on!!" Sandstorm says, "Drop a house on 'em Broady! Or boat, in your case." Broadside sputters unhappily. Damn his accuracy! Snapdragon's a big target, too! "Rrrrghh, quit bein' dodgy, TAKE IT LIKE A MECH!" He swoops about, as agile as a big fat jet can be, and takes off after the now airborn Horrocon. He doesn't get far when Catechism's grenade rips up part of his fuselage. Banking sharply, he spots Roadbuster going kablooey. This enrages him to no end. A blinding field of electricity expands around his form and lances out for both Catechism and Snapdragon. "SLAGGIN' 'CON SCUM!!" Broadside shifts and folds into his F/A-18 Hornet mode. Combat: F/A-18 Hornet strikes Catechism with his Electric Field Area attack! Combat: You took 4 damage. Combat: F/A-18 Hornet 's attack has damaged your Agility! Combat: F/A-18 Hornet misses Filthy Jet with his Electric Field Area attack! Incredibly glad that he's in an exo-suit, Vince doesn't get the standard effects associated with humans and the kind of nasty exhaust fumes that Snapdragon is pumping out. Watching that grenade sail in, he cringes, but still charges forward and lets the shrapnel from that little explosive punch into his armor. Unfortunately, that shrapnel imbedded itself in his laser emitters and knocked them off-line. More warning lights kicked on, informing Vince of that fact, and he muttered, spinning up the Vulcan Cannon one last time. With a war-cry, he lets fly a stream of 20mm rounds at the Seeker that just dropped Roadbuster. "Yaaaaahh! Eat lead, Decepticon!" Combat: ARES Exo-Armor sets its defense level to Fearless. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes Catechism with its Vulcan Auto Cannon Suppression fire. attack! -1 Combat: You took 5 damage. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor 's attack has damaged your Strength! Buster's jubilation is quickly snuffed as a grenade lands directly beside him. "Shoehorn!" The rest of this string of curses is lost in an explosion that leaves Roadbuster broken and unconscious. Catechism is satisfied to see another reckless driver taken off the road, not that there are any roads here. However, for her efforts, she gets electrified by Broadside, which burns out some of her reflex arcs, and shot up by the Ares some more, which blows out some of her arm servos. She takes cover in a thicket, and she radios, <> Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Catechism inspires Filthy Jet with overbearing and frightening words! Filthy Jet always forgets Broadside had that gigivolt field, until it's too late. But, with his superior velocity, the huge dirty-white S(nappe)R-71 outraces the broadening electric jolt, and whips around when the field has dissipated. The usually lazy Horrorcon is filled with fury, fueled on by Catechism's inspiring words. Powering up his dual gyro-guns, the jet deploys a small radar dish. "If you won't fly home, I'll send you back IN PIECES!" Snapjet shouts, firing a pair of sustained beams from his purple guns. Combat: Snapdragon uses up a charge on his Radar Helmet booster pack! Combat: Filthy Jet strikes F/A-18 Hornet with his Gyro-Guns attack! -1 Combat: That attack has temporarily impaired F/A-18 Hornet 's Agility. (Crippled) "You can't take me down with mere CHAIRS!" Broadside roars, angling after Snapdragon, quite thorougly pissed. He's nailed with ...radar thingy, plus gyro-guns, and is momentarily thrown off balance, swiveling uneasily in the air. "OW! Okay punk, you wanna' dogfight? We'll dogfight. BRING IT!" Breaking away, he climbs and snaps a pylon open. Combat: F/A-18 Hornet misses Filthy Jet with his CBU-87 Cluster Bomb attack! ARES Exo-Armor watches his 20mm tracers strike home and he grins. But he doesn't stop there, he's pressing the attack, despite his target taking cover. The hand of that 12 foot exo-suit reaches to it's waist and grips the side-arm, bringing it up and firing off a quick blast of what looks suspiciously like lightning in the direction that Catechism went for cover. If there's no cover, there's nowhere for the Decepticon to hide. "You're gonna regret tangling with me, Decepticon! No use hiding!" Combat: ARES Exo-Armor strikes Catechism with its Electrical handgun (Disruptor) attack! Combat: You took 4 damage. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor 's attack has damaged your Firepower! Catechism supposes that shooting Broadside works just as well as hitting him with a chair. However, her trees cannot hide her from the Ares, who nails her in one of her guns. She supposes that she fire back while the other gun is still working, and she again tries to nail the human with her acid, stepping out from behind the trees, into a clearing for a better view. Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Aggressive. Combat: Catechism strikes ARES Exo-Armor with her Acid Strike attack! Filthy Jet careens on past Broadside after unleashing his gyro-guns, the supersonic 'blackbird' being too fast to stop. The jet makes a wide banking turn, coming around again to point at Broadside's own jet mode. He puts on a burst of speed, blasting towards the Wrecker, tranforming into his equally-filthy robot mode, and trying ot use his big fists to pound the jet into submission. Snapdragon transforms into his filthy robot mode! Combat: Snapdragon misses F/A-18 Hornet with his yes i tried to punch a jet >:/ (Kick) attack! Continuous misses doesn't seem to hinder Broadside's fighting morale. He darts back and forth, evading a jet punch, and finally transforms to join Snapdragon on the ground. With a few heavy, wide strides, he whips out his axe and attempts to bring it down over Snapdragon's shoulder, too furious for words. In a swift series of snaps and clanks, Broadside transforms into his robot mode. Combat: Broadside misses Snapdragon with his Vibro-Ax attack! Stalking forward, rather wrecklessly, Vince leaps to the side to avoid another spray of acid as Catechism steps out from behind her rather useless cover, he leaps too slow and takes the spray in the side. That acid is eating through the armor /fast/, and a warning light flashes, indicating the complete loss of one of the gyro's that controls the arm, and also some of the 'artificial muscle'. That was going to hurt, but he wasn't about to let it go. Not yet...So he turns and leaps again for the Seeker's 'bad' leg, to try to damage it further, and force the Decepticon to flee, despite being close to retreating himself. He's determined that this Decepticon is running before he does! Combat: ARES Exo-Armor misses Catechism with its Bad Leg? Lemme help you with that! (Smash) attack! Combat: Your attack continues to damage ARES Exo-Armor Catechism looks up and sees Snapdragon trying to punch a jet. She facepalms. Taking to the air herself, making use of her handy lift fan, she turns into a jet, now higher in the air than the Ares expected her to be. The XF-35B studies Broadside and tries to give Snapdragon some advice, while flying very cautiously, "Uh... maybe don't try to punch jets. That usually doesn't work very well. Shoot him in the nosecone. He probably keeps a lot of sensors there." Catechism transforms to her jet mode, which is quite astoundingly simple for the coneheaded model that she is. Combat: Catechism sets her defense level to Protected. Combat: Catechism analyzes Broadside for weaknesses Snapdragon can exploit. Snapdragon grumbles his dissapointment in missing Broadside, but he did what he wanted to do; Bring Broadside down to the ground! Things are looking pretty even for the pair of Triplechangers, and as Snapdragon sidesteps the brutal axe, he snaps off a stout tree, and swings his make-shift cudgel towards Broadside's head. where his nose is. "He doesn't have a nosecone in this mode!" Combat: Snapdragon strikes Broadside with his clubbed! (Kick) attack! Landing hard after the Seeker went jet-form and took off again, Vince mutters and pushes his Ares back to it's feet. This was the moment of decision here. Does he stay and try to land one last shot on that Decepticon, or does he cut his losses and get the hell out of Dodge? It was a tough choice, but he watched Snapdragon beating on Broadside, and looked over at Roadbuster's unconscious form, and he snarled, steeling himself and let one final burst fly from the Vulcan Cannon over his right shoulder as still more warnings came over the instruments in front of him, indicating the incredible damage that acid was still doing. But he still had time for this one last shot, as the Vulcan spun up and spewed forth thousands of 20mm bullets, streaking towards that jet in a final, desperate attempt to bring it down. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor misses XF-35B Astral Lightning with its Vulcan Auto Cannon attack! Combat: Your attack continues to damage ARES Exo-Armor Broadside gets smartly thwacked over the helm with a tree! It snaps in half and sprays leaves everywhere. "Fragggg'uh!" Thrown off balance yet again, he stumbles back a bit, wincing. He has to pause for a proverbial breather, crouching to lean on his axe as he takes a swig from a huge flask. Perhaps it would be a better idea to get Buster back before he gets any worse. <> Combat: Broadside takes extra time to steady himself. Pass Combat: Broadside uses up a charge on his Big Gulp booster pack! XF-35B Astral Lightning corrects, "Okay, when he has a nosecone! You're so picky!" She circles, surveying the area closely, "You know, I think between those trees, there's a leftover chair from some of the previous wars. Hit him with the chair!" Perhaps it is just a rock that looks like a chair. Maybe it actually is a chair. Who knows? The flash of gunfire travels at the speed of light. The bullets only travel at around the speed of sound. By the time she's processed the light, at the speed of electricity, she banks out of the way, before the bullets can touch her. Combat: Catechism analyzes Broadside for weaknesses Snapdragon can exploit. <> Snapdragon responds, looking around. He doesn't see any chairs! <> He responds, but proceeds to act without waiting for confimation from his data-feeding ally. Using his TITANIC STRENGTH he wrests the stump from the ground, and as Broadside takes a swig, Snapdragon swings at him AGAIN with a giant heavy chunk of wood! Combat: Snapdragon misses Broadside with his stump! (Punch) attack! Broadside frowns behind his mask up at the vulture giving ole' Snapdragon pointers, then looks down to be met with another careening chunk of wood. He ducks at the last nano, scowling, "Wood? WOOD!? Is that all you got! Bahh!" But Broadside doesn't bother with a counterattack. Time to split. He subspaces his axe and turns to hoist the wreckage that was once a battlejeep up over his head. <> Combat: Broadside begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from XF-35B Astral Lightning and ARES Exo-Armor Well, crap, his targeting computer was damaged, apparently, though it wasn't showing anything on the indicators. Must have been knocked out of alignment. Vince mutters and turns to head for safer grounds. <> With the left arm almost completely immobilized, and the left leg not too far behind it, Vince's Ares was in definite rough shape, from the acid eating a rather /large/ hole in the suit, and all the laser, electrical, and other damage, it was a testament to Vince's skills with a wrench that it was still even functional. It would be lying on the ground collecting dust already, if he hadn't managed to stop and patch the thing up a while ago, but it was a moot point now, and he turned and, as quickly as possible, made his way back towards safety. Combat: ARES Exo-Armor begins retreating, leaving itself vulnerable to parting shots from XF-35B Astral Lightning Catechism says, "At last, they're finally taking your advice and going home!" Roadbuster lies against a boulder all broken and whatnot. That's what he gets for swearing. ...until he's grabbed by Broadside. Snapdragon says, "YES. I win!" Catechism says, "Hooray. Your prize is that you get to go to medical and get fixed, instead of finishing your patrol." XF-35B Astral Lightning could get in parting shots on the Autobots. She totally could. However, she has wasted enough energon today, she thinks. Right now, Catechism just wants to get back, get repaired, and put her feet up, to take some weight off that bad leg. Stupid Wreckers. Combat: XF-35B Astral Lightning begins retreating, outrunning all pursuit. Vince Larsen leaves the ARES Exo-Armor . Vince Larsen has arrived. ARES Exo-Armor has left. Vince Larsen takes ARES Exo-Armor . Broadside moves northwest to Mexico. Broadside has left. Snapdragon is almost too lazy to go back to the Shark. Almost. After all, his nice hot oil bath is there. He trundles out from under the dense canopy, and then lazily transforms and flies home. Decepticon Message: 2/149 Posted Author AAR: Panama Sat Feb 06 Catechism ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Catechism doesn't look quite so badly off. It's mainly just small arms damage and a bit of electrical shocking this time. She reports, "Snapdragon, on a routine patrol of the boundaries of our territory, ran into the Autobot Wrecker Roadbuster. I arrived as backup. Some human in an Ares and later Broadside reinforced Roadbuster. Snapdragon was able to take out Roadbuster, with a very slight assist from one of my grenades. Really. Snapdragon did all the work. Then we sent Broadside and the human packing, thereby defending our territory. That will teach those pests to meddle! However, we might want to sink the UNS Atlantis. It's awfully close for comfort, and if the Autobots lend the EDC some of those Moskits and load them up on the Atlantis... that would not be pretty." Spinny